Whether reciting poetry about resistance to the Israeli occupation or singing songs of social significance of great labour battles and environmental movements, David Rovics’ lyrics are a call to action to all who believe in Justice, Peace & Equality.

Mark down Saturday Nov. 22 in your calendar to come out for the screening of a short film about Turning the Tide 2014: The Peoples’ Paddle for the Salish Sea — and help kickoff organizing for the 2015 paddle!

The event is a fundraiser in partnership with Sierra Club and Raven Trust as part of the Pull-Together.ca fundraising campaign for First Nations legal funds to fight the Northern Gateway pipeline.

We hope you can make it on Nov. 22. If you are interested in helping to organize film screenings in the Gulf Islands or the 2015 paddle, let us know! info@turningthetide.ca.

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Wednesday October 15
Songhees Wellness Centre
1100 Admirals Road

Doors open at 6:30pm, with a light meal available Presentation begin at 7pm

You are invited to a presentation on Indigenous Food Systems with Songhees Chief Ron Sam, elder Joan Morris and ethnobotanist Dr. Nancy Turner. They will share with us stories and traditional knowledge of First Nations land management.

Dr. Turner is an internationally-distinguished scholar and scientist who has devoted her life to documenting the endangered knowledge of First Nations. As a pioneer in ethnobiology, her more than 25 years of research have focused on the diverse interactions of First Peoples in British Columbia with the ecosystems they depend on and the critical role of plant resources for foods, medicines and materials. Dr. Turner’s research is a valuable compendium on aboriginal culture and plant lore in British Columbia.

A light meal will be available beginning at 6:30pm, prepared by Chef Tom Kral, the Nature’s Chef. Suggested donation $10 to cover costs associated with this event. Any surplus funds will be donated to the Songhees to support food security initiatives.

VICTORIA—The Legislature Lawn is slated to be transformed into an outdoor “peoples’ classroom” by students, parents, teachers and community members on Tuesday Sept 2nd if the BC government does not reach a settlement with the teachers first.

“Christy’s Classroom” will open with the ringing of a school bell at 9AM on Tuesday, the day classes are scheduled to start in BC’s public school system.

The classroom will include a morning assembly; classes in civics, history, environmental education, music and art; physical exercise and recess; the convening of students’ council and parents’ council meetings; and activity areas for younger children. All parents, students and community members are encouraged to participate.

“I believe it is important for the whole community to come out to Christy’s Classroom,” says Victoria parent Renay Maurice, who is helping organize the event. “Moms, dads, caregivers, aunts and uncles, grandparents, little kids and babies too are encouaged to attend. We owe it to our teachers, to the students, and to each other.”

“By showing up on September 2nd ready to learn on the first day of school, we are demonstrating our concern for education in BC and holding the government accountable,” says Maurice.

A wide array of community organizations and individuals have joined together for Christy’s Classroom, including School District 61 trustees Diane McNally and Deborah Nohr, parent organizations Protect Public Education Now and Support BC Teachers, and the advocacy groups Raging Grannies and Social Environmental Alliance. Jim Sinclair, President of the BC Federation of Labour, is scheduled to address the morning assembly at Christy’s Classroom, along with children and youth enrolled in public schools in the Greater Victoria area.

Deborah Nohr, trustee on the School District 61 Board of Education, points to the record of the Premier and her government as contributing to the current impasse with the teachers, and other deficiencies in BC’s public education system.

“This government has removed over $300M from public education every year since 2002,” Nohr says. “That funding had been lawfully negotiated through many years of teacher bargaining to target and support students’ needs. This has resulted in many students experiencing the frustration of inadequate instruction and other essential learning supports.”

All are welcome at Christy’s Classroom, Tuesday September 2nd at 9AM at the BC Legislature.

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Due to requests made to see the presentations put online, here are the two presentations from Pamela Schreiner and Mark McInnes. The first is the Big Picture View of Systems and Structures, from Pamela. This presentation, that delves into how systems hold our cultural beliefs, and reflect our human nature in attempts to become too rigid, inevitably fail, and that only a self-organizing system, open to change and trust, can better reflect a more sustainable, humane society.

The second presentation, by Mark McInnes, gets into the systemic issues facing democracy and politics in BC and Canada. The Powerpoint presentation, Broken Politics, ties into the lecture. Campaign financing, partisanship, low-voter turnout, and incestuous revolving-door practices, all affect the quality of our society, and our ability to tackle issues facing our communities.